Nicola Sturgeon a.o. versus Nicola Sturgeon

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Belgian softens penalties for illegal euthanasia deaths March 28, 2024 – Michael Cook Belgian doctors can be prosecuted if they administer euthanasia without regard to the specified conditions. But however serious the infraction… Read more »

Assisted suicide never seems to go off the boil in the UK. The latest jurisdiction to bring it to a vote is Scotland. The right-to-die lobby believes that the public is broadly in favour of it. However, in a surprising development, Nicola Sturgeon, Scotland’s popular former First Minister, appears to be moving to a position of stout opposition.

Scotland to vote on legalising assisted dying for the third time April 4, 2024 – Michael Cook Scotland could becomethe first jurisdiction in the United Kingdom to legalise assisted dying. Scottish Liberal Democrat Liam McArthur tabled an… Read more »

Assisted dying  
Law may soon diverge across British Isles, MPs warn

James Moore: MPs must make up their minds up on assisted dying – whether they want to or not

The government is on life support – will someone put it out of its misery?

As this zombie government shambles along, its only two aims seem to be to cling on to power and make headlines, writes Alan Rusbridger. If we had passed legislation in favour of assisted dying, now would be the time to send it to administrative Dignitas

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Watch / Keir Starmer makes assisted dying pledge during phone call with Esther Rantzen

The Independent Debate

Assisted suicide numbers in Oregon continue to rise March 28, 2024 – David Albert Jones In 1997,Oregon became the first jurisdiction to legalise physician-assisted suicide for people with a terminally illness. Since then numbers have increased… Read more »

What Deathbed Visions Teach Us About Living

Researchers are documenting a phenomenon that seems to help the dying, as well as those they leave behind.

 

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The assisted dying debate As European countries including France debate easing their laws on assisted dying, the Guardian’s social affairs editor, Robert Booth, follows one woman’s journey to take control of her death from the UK – where the practice is outlawed – to Switzerland. In an astonishing interview which took place the day before her death, Paola Marra, a woman with terminal stage four bowel cancer, told us about her decision to end her life at Dignitas, a centre in Switzerland for assisted dying. Marra also spoke of the urgent need for legislative change in the UK. Robert Booth’s piece featured beautiful portraits by Linda Nylind. The assisted dying debate: Paola’s story Paola Marra ended her life last week in Switzerland after being told by doctors she could not be guaranteed a pain-free death from bowel cancer in the coming months. Robert Booth reports Cancer sufferer who ended life at Dignitas sends final assisted dying message to politicians Read more on The Guardian

• Jonathan Sumption | I’ve made up my mind on the acute issue of assisted dying

• Letters | Hope that assisted dying could lessen suffering for patients and families

• Letters | Any decision on assisted dying should not be made by clinicians alone

I understand why people are wary about assisted dying, but it gave my mother a dignified end | Renate van der Zee

| Sturgeon ‘veering against’ Bill to legalise assisted dying in Scotland